Wednesday, 16 December 2015

Already discussed this a little bit on social media over the past week, basically been trying to figure out how to run the Death's Chase air race with the Savage Worlds rules. Believed I've figured something out that at least people can try.

Death's Chase uses the Chase rules in the Savage Worlds Deluxe edition, it has a total of three laps with each lap being a Standard Chase in their own right. The first lap is the 'sounding lap' and simply involves getting round the course, laps two and three are 'weapons free' as in combat is allowed.

The following additional rules are used, these rules are to be used instead of the normal Chase rules where conflict between the two arise.

Setup

Beginning the race by assigning a different token for each individual racer, then determine the Race Order in a similar fashion as to how initiative is determined with the highest scoring racer at the front (or first place) of the Race Order.

Gameplay

Follow the Chase rules as normal with regards to rolling the manoeuvring trait (Piloting in this case) and each racer getting a card. An "advantage" is typically over the racer in front and must be declared as either "position" or "combat" (if after the first lap).

*Position - Means the racer has overtaken the racer in front and so their token is moved along one place in the Race Order.

*Combat - Racer gains +2 on their attack rolls.

Attacks are only allowed during the second and third laps, in addition a racer is only allowed to attack the person in front of them in the Race Order. The manoeuvring Trait roll is simply to determine initiative order for each round.

There is no change in the Race Order in between laps, having separate Chases for each lap is simply to allow the GM a chance for any non-racing players to do 'behind the scenes' stuff and thus keep them involved. The winner is whoever is in the first place of the Race Order at the end of the third and final lap, anyone who crashes during any of the laps is considered to be out of the race and is removed from the Race Order.

Final Thoughts

Tried to keep things simple and I hope people trying these rules out, though it would be interesting to see people's thoughts on them. I've been suggested to read through Gladiators of the Dominion, something that I'll probably do at some point in the future to at least compare the above rules with the chariot racing rules in that book.

Thursday, 10 December 2015

Currently have a few ideas for adventures for Frozen Skies kicking around, plus a possible Plot Point Campaign. So decided to post up an overview of each one, see what interests people, etc.

*The Lost Sodkan Mine - This one I've already run a couple of times, but it still feels that it needs some more work on it. It basically involves the players getting roped in to investigate a recent series of attacks by 'mysterious ironclad raiders' and ends up with an old mine and a gunfight with agents of the Iron Collective. Considering having an alternative intro to the adventure, perhaps arriving in a town during or just after the raiders attack.*Remnants - Working title as the moment, but it basically begins with the players getting another job from the crime lord Ferret and a sort-of follow on from Firewater & Ice. At first glance it may seem like a straightforward job; travel to some remote ghost town and meet up with one of Ferret's agents in order to pick up a package. In typically "things never go smooth" fashion the ghost town proves to be anything but and the guy they're suppose to be meeting is nowhere in sight, though he has left notes explaining that something isn't quite right in the town.

*The Spires - Again, another working title. This is the Plot Point Campaign I'm kicking about in my head at the moment. It concerns the pirate haven of Broken Spires, chiefly a power play between the various sky pirate captains and an attempt by the Commonwealth to crush this bastion of piracy for once and for all. It's already shaping up to be a possibly complex campaign as the players will probably end up interacting with multiple factions, wonder to play off against one another or somehow unite them.

And Lastly - An honourable mention of a one sheet I wrote, involves the players breaking into a rival crime boss' warehouse amidst the backdrop of a pit fight/boxing match. Things get...complicated.

Wednesday, 2 December 2015

We're now hurtling towards Midwinter and the twilight of one year ready for the dawn of the next.

Interest in both the Frozen Skies Setting Primer and the Firewater & Ice adventure seems to be steady, I still get a handful of sales notifications each week with a slow trickle of income from the paid for purchases. The majority of my sales are still 'free' ones which I've come to expect from Pay What You Want (though the 'paid' ones still surprise me from time-to-time), plus thus far I've only encountered one person who's tried to pirate my stuff. Plus the general awareness of the Frozen Skies setting is steadily growing as proven by a recent discussion on Facebook (so guess I'm doing something right).

So a big thank you to everyone who's supported me thus far in this crazy venture, be it whether liked a blog post or even nabbed a copy of the Setting Primer. It means alot that at least I've created something that people have found interesting enough to warrant a closer look.

Granted my goal of getting a fully fledged book out remains unfulfilled, though I'm a few steps closer with extra artwork done and of course the Setting Primer out. I am expecting the arrival of my first-born child round Valentine's next year, though at first glance that may throw a spanner in the works but it could be a blessing in disguise since I'll be able to take a few weeks off from work but we'll have to see how it all goes. In addition I've gotten a new dayjob that has more hours and a slightly higher rate of pay, least its a better source of funds (whilst it lasts) to at least get more artwork paid for, etc.

A newborn child is going to have a major effect on what events I can attend next year. For starters UK Games Expo is out of the question, granted with the new dayjob the cost may not be such a big issue as it was but logistics remain a big problem. So that leaves events closer to home, chiefly ones that can be done in a single day. So Diceni in Norwich and ExiliCon in Cambridge are the events currently on the radar, though events in London are being considered but again we'll have to see.